Kingston >> A disciplinary hearing involving former city Fire Chief Chris Rea began Monday but is on hold for at least the rest of this week.

The reason for the postponement was not immediately clear.

Ronald Dunn, Rea’s attorney, said only that “well, he is entitled to back pay, and that is something that has to be dealt with.”

City attorney Andrew Zweben, who is not directly handling hearing, said he was uncertain why the hearing was postponed. The city is using an outside labor law firm for the case.

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Zweben said cases like Rea’s often have ongoing negotiations but that he was unaware of any settlement proposals in this matter.

In October, the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court ruled Rea had filed legal papers in a salary dispute in a timely manner and was entitled to back pay. Zweben, however, said the decision did not mean back pay was guaranteed, evidenced by the fact that appeals court did not order it.

Dunn said the decision in favor of back pay was made because the city did not file disciplinary charges within 30 days of Rea’s suspension in February 2012, as required by state Civil Service Law.

Rea has been seeking back pay, reinstatement to the city payroll and the dismissal of the disciplinary charges against him, including that he used a city computer to access sexually explicit material on the Internet.

Rea was suspended without pay on Feb. 9, 2012, and filed what’s known as an Article 78 lawsuit on Aug. 30 of that year. The suit was dismissed on Nov. 21 by state Supreme Court Justice Henry F. Zwack, who said Rea did not act within four months of his suspension, as required by law in such cases. The Appellate Division ruling reversed Zwack’s decision.

Kingston Mayor Shayne Gallo suspended Rea less than a month after appointing him chief, citing only “time in attendance” as the reason. Specific allegations, including the one about sexually explicit materials on the Internet, weren’t revealed until months later.

The city also alleged Rea requested both city and state pay for hours he worked teaching a state firefighter training course.

Gallo said previously that his administration believes some of the alleged wrongdoing, including the double-dipping, was a “continuing fraud” and that the charges were made and filed properly.

The Ulster County District Attorney’s Office ultimately said it did not find any criminal wrongdoing by Rea.

About the Author

Paul Kirby is a reporter for the Freeman, covering Kingston politics. He has been at the Freeman since August 1996. Reach the author at pkirby@freemanonline.com
or follow Paul on Twitter: @PaulatFreeman.